Hoist for coal-mines.



A. APPLEYARD.

HOIST FOR COAL MINES. APPLlCATION FILED MAR. 7. 1917.

Patented Nov. 13, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEET I.

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APPLICATION FILED MAR. 7, 1917- s EEEEEEEEEEEEE 2.

J WI Vflm I ARTHUR APPLEYARD, 0F BEAVERDALE,-PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR 0FONE-HALF T0 WILLIAM J. FAUX, OE IEHILADELEHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

HOIST FOR COAL-MINES.

Specification of Letters .Patent. Patented NO 13, 1917'.

Application filed March 7, 1917. Serial No. 153,035.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR APPLEYARD, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Beaverdale, county of Cambria, State of Pennsylvania,have invented certain Improvements in Hoists for Coal-Mines, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to certain improvements in the means for handlingminers cars in coal and other mines.

One object of the invention is to avoid the expense incident to removingrock other than coal in order to render the galleries of sufiicientdepth to admit of the movement of mules or electric locomotives.

Another object of the invention is to design the mechanism so that itcan be worked in galleriesin which the seams of coal are very narrow. II v Stillanother object of the invention is to operate thecarsindependently in the several galleriesand to rovide electricmechanism by which the hoist can be actuated at any point in thegallery.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing one of the mine galleries partlybroken away and illustrating my invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view showing the two galleries and the independentmechanism for each gallery; and i Fig. 3 is a side view of my improvedhoisting mechanism. 7 g

This invention relates particularly to the mechanism for handling thecars in coal mines and mines having comparatively narrow veins. It hasbeen the general practice to cut the coal in the veins in order toincrease the depth of the gallery and to cut away the stone to asuflicient depth to allow for the passage of the mules or an electriccar into the working gallery from the main gallery. This extra cuttingis waste and is exceedingly expensive as the-stone is harder than thevein of coal and must be loaded on cars and removed to the surface.

By my invention, I am enabled to reduce. the height of a working galleryand in many instances not cutting beyond the depth of the vein of coal,the height being suilicient to allow a man to work and the ordinary typeof car to be drawn into and out of the working gallery.

A is the main gallery and B, B are two of the series of workinggalleries and the length of these galleries depends considerably uponthe vein of coal and the width will vary under ordinary conditions.There are usually comparatively large pillars C at the main gallerybetween each working gallery, as shown.

l is the main track extending through the main gallery and leading totracks connected to the surface or with elevators, according to the typeof mine. 2, 2 are the temporary tracks extending into theworkinggalleries B, B. 3 are the switches for driving the car from the maintrack onto the working tracks 2. 4 is the car adapted to the tracks 1and2, and this car is loaded by a miner in the working gallery and whenit passes onto the main track 1 it is drawn out by mules or alocomotive, as it will be understood that the main gallery is of agreater height than the working gallery in the ority of cases. The floorof the working gallery is usually inclined, the grade being such thatwhen the car in the working gallery is released it will travel bygravity out of the gallery and onto the main track. The great difficultyhas been'to provide means for taking the car into the farther end of thegallery where'the work is being done.

At one side ,of the track Zin each gallery is a hoisting apparatus 5consisting of a drum 6' mounted in suitable bearings 7 and an electricmotor 8 geared to p the drum through gearing 9 and 10. Mounted on thedrum is a rope 11 in the present instance extending around a guide wheel12 and around a pulley 13 at the extreme end of the gallery. The pulley13 is mounted on a strut 14lsecured to the floor and ceiling in theordinary manner and the wheel 12 is alsocarried by a strut 15. At theend of the rope 11 is a hook 16, which engages a pin 17 on the car 4 sothat when the hook is in engagement with the pin and the motor is driveninone direction the drum will con 'the'rope and drag the car to thepoint desired.

In order to enable a miner to handlethe 'car. properly without having togo to the hoisting mechanlsm I provide an electric switch 18 connectedby wires to the motor 8 in the ordinary manner so that on operating thisswitch the miner can cause the car to traverse the track to any pointdesired. This switch is mounted on a post 19 held in position in anysuitable manner, or it can be mounted on a temporary post and shiftedfrom place to place. The wires, however, are preferably arrangedoverhead so that the operator will not come in contact with them.

In order to prevent the racing of the drum, when the rope is slack,I-providean automatic brake pivoted at 21 to a strut 22 and this brakehas a shoe 23 which bears against the drum and has, at its outer end, agrooved Wheel 24-, which rests on the rope so that the moment the ropebecomes slack the brake will come in contact with {the drum 6, but, assoon as the rope is taut again, it will raise the brake lever 20 and itsshoe 23 clear of the drum. :The hoisting mechanism is temporarily heldinposition by jack pipes 25 which extend to the roof. I have shown threejack pipes, bu t it :Will be understood that any number can be used, asdesired.

The operation is as follows:

lVhenthe working galleries are started, the opening ,isanade and thetemporary track partly laid and connected. to the main track. After theworking has been made to a certain depth, then the hoisting mechanisniis located in position at one side of the traek, as shown, and at theentrance of theavorking gallery. A strut is placed at the extreme innerend of the .workand the rope is passed around the pulleys, as shown, sothat whena car. is brought to the entrance of a working'galleryflt isconpledto the rope, and by operating the vswitch mechanism the drumisset in motion and thel car is hauled up the slight ineline and,intothegallery to the point where the'miner is working. It is held i-n;thi sposition until it isfilled, then thedrum is released and the car returnsby gravity to thesentrance f h VO -g, i dthe driver inathe nain gallerywill nncouple the rope allowing the car to pass onto the track inthemain gallery. The empty car wi-ll be broughtinto position and coupledto the rope. The miner will again operate the switch and the empty carvvillb'e drawn np ,into position in the working gallery. Some ofithesegalleries are comparativelyl ong and considerable time is usnally wastedby the miner go ng h f ng h of th .gall ry to operate hi ca Whe eas, .byy impr ment', the minercan devote his entire time to mining coalandloading the ears.

y this a rang en c r al v isi dependent of the others, so that one minerdoes not have to Walt upon others for power mechanism for handling hiscars and the .use ofmules and (BXPQIISHG; electric locomotives areentirely dispensed with in the working galleries.

-While I have described the hoisting apparatus located at the entranceof the work- .lng gallery, 1n some instances, 1t may be onto any oneofthe, tracks i111 the galleries;

a holsting apparatus located in a fixedpositionatthe entrance to eachworkinggallery, the, floor of each gallery being arrangeclon an inclinefrom the entliallce tothepoint where the coal is mined, thehoistingapparatnsheing arranged .to draw the empty .car into the galleryto thepoint .Wherethe miner is Working, the {ulnar being allowed to u yg av y in .P Sitio to a t n ferred to the main track,

2. The combinationofla,mine having a main gallery anda series of workinggalle i s; a track i theimlin g lle y .ar'r fa track in e aeh workinggallery connected vto the maintrack, the saidtraeks in the workinggalleriesbeing arrangedon an incline upward from their connection with;the vmai ga lery; .ah i ting ppa atus. ocated at the entrance of eachworking gallery and having a ropeextending to ;the inner end .of i g llryan a und 2 a pull y and arranged to becoupled'to acarsothat the empty.car. ean be drawn into the gallery r by the hoisting mechanism, the;loaded car being all we t etu n by 'gna i yra den electr swi c a heminers station connecte to th hoisting, apparatus so that the operatorcan nontm th mo o W thout leaving h st t on in it ess whe eof afiixmysignature ART APBLEYARD- (321 9 of 3 825 29 2 37 b rebte esfllqrfit teneach by as d essing h e mm s o of ten i-

